Former national security leaders warn Congress that 'time is running out' to protect Dreamers

Former
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, right, looks at
CIA Director Leon Panetta as they testify on Capitol Hill in
Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011, before the Senate
Intelligence Committee hearing on worldwide
threats.Associated Press/Evan
Vucci

Former top national security officials wrote a letter
urging Congress to pass the Dream Act in the upcoming spending
bill, before time runs out.

Young immigrants known as "Dreamers" will soon begin
losing work authorization and protection from deportation, due
to President Donald Trump's decision to terminate the Deferred
Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

Lawmakers have introduced the Dream Act to replace
DACA, but the legislation has not yet reached the floor for a
vote.

Among the immigrants who could face deportation if no
legislation is enacted are roughly 900 military servicemembers
and recruits.

A bipartisan group of 13 former top national security officials
urged congressional leaders in a letter on Tuesday
to pass the Dream Act by the year's end to protect the thousands
of young immigrants who could face the risk of deportation as
early as March.

The former officials warned that hundreds of thousands of
immigrants, known as "Dreamers," are already facing "negative
human consequences of the program's termination," and urged House
and Senate leaders to include legislation to protect them in the
Congressional spending bill that must pass by December 8 to avoid
a government shutdown.

The letter, first published by
Axios, was signed by former Secretary of State Madeleine
Albright, former defense secretaries Leon Panetta and Ash Carter,
former CIA directors General Michael Hayden and John Brennan,
former Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, and former
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, among others.

"Neither the House nor the Senate has agreed upon a legislative
solution to resolve this critical issue. Time is running out,"
the letter said. "With every day that passes, these Dreamers are
getting closer to the reality of deportation."

People
march across the Brooklyn Bridge to protest the planned
dissolution of DACA in Manhattan, New York City,
U.S.Thomson
Reuters

Trump announced in
September that his administration would begin phasing out the
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, the Obama-era
policy that offered temporary work authorization and protection
from deportation to young immigrants who were brought to the US
illegally as children.

Unless Congress enacts the Dream Act, the proposed DACA
replacement , immigrants will begin losing their DACA
protection en masse starting in March. If passed, the act
would allow the Dreamers to earn permanent residence and
eventually American citizenship. Those who recently renewed their
status will retain their status for roughly two years before DACA
expires.

At the time of the announcement of the program's termination,
DACA protected roughly 690,000 young immigrants. Since then,
approximately 22,000 Dreamers failed
to renew their status by the Trump administration's October 5
deadline, and some have already lost work authorization and
protection.

The former officials said they were particularly concerned about
the roughly 900 DACA recipients who are either currently serving
in the US military, or are recruits waiting to start boot camp.
Those individuals have "a strong desire to serve our nation," and
often possess valuable language or medical skills, the letter
said.

"These Dreamers are eager to serve our country, whether in their
individual communities, or in uniform abroad," the letter said.
"Rescinding DACA without a concrete legislative solution puts
these Dreamers at risk."

The officials also warned of the estimated $7.5 billion cost
of deporting every DACA recipient, arguing that government
resources would be better spent focusing on "combatting the very
real threats we face," including violent criminals, terrorist
attacks, and cyber attacks.

"Deporting soldiers would be a waste of resources, but more
importantly, a travesty of justice," the letter said. "We should
leave no man or woman behind. Let that be our guiding principle."